So the 'head start' for Star Trek Online (STO) is two days in, and so far it's been a bit of a bumpy ride. When I got access to the Open Beta a couple of weeks ago through my pre-order for the main game, I tried hard not to be too judgemental and critical of what I saw. I knew it wasn't fair to bash the game when it was still undergoing testing and when much of the content hadn't been properly released. I'm a huge fan of Star Trek. I really wanted to love this game, but so far I'm not feeling the love.
The live version of the game is now running for players with 'head start' access and the servers have gone down a couple of times, and players have been booted out mid-session for emergency maintenance. Worse still, a player login queuing system has been implemented with a 'server full' message which has left hundreds of players waiting for hours to gain access to the content that they've already paid (or will be paying) for.
While I can understand that STO as a new game will have its fair share of teething problems, I am amazed that the product currently offered is so rough around the edges. The camera and controls need more work, the missions are still buggy, and the graphics really look like they could do with a polish. The gameplay itself is heavily combat-orientated, and although there is more non-combat content than there was in the Beta, this still feels like an afterthought. Your choices as a player don't really make any difference to this universe - you're just grinding away for merits so you can buy a bigger starship.
I am not alone in making these critcisms. If you can wade through the mire of fanboy rage on the official forums there are a large number of quite sensible players asking a large number of quite sensible questions. Why didn't Cryptic accurately predict the high level of player demand for the game? Why are there so many parts of the game that still feel like a work in progress? Why wasn't more time spent on making the game feel more like the franchise on which it is based, rather than just a spaceship knockoff of WOW or CO?
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I still hold out hope that the game will improve in both content and stability.
CO is the reason I didn't get STO, and looks like I might have made the right decision.
As you say, a chance was given with regards a leading Franchise title, a chance for players to make a difference to the whole game world... what a dissapointment, at this point what should have been offered is simply not there, and the promise of mind numbing "Raids" for bigger and better drops, will NOT keep people paying their subs.
Sadly in many ways it looks like they calculated what could be gained from the launch numbers, looked at how long they could keep people in by slower leveling adding this to the pot and finally how many "real people" they would have to keep happy to keep an income flow from the title.
Once again a game that forgot to communicate with its players asking what they wanted.... instead of just going off and doing their own thing and then spending months defending the title.
I'm not yet decided... I still like elements of the "grinding", but unless they inject a way of players effecting the universe, they will loose me, the minute I ding max level (if I can be kept interested long enough) Even small titles such as Pirates of the Burning Sea, let the player bases dictate who governs a port.. or map.
So I'm left with a final question with this "what could be beautiful game"
Whats the point ??
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I still hold out hope that the game will improve in both content and stability.